Re: Government and Repression

["Ian Farquhar" <ianf@simple.sydney.sgi.com>]

On Aug 31,  4:08pm, yusuf921 wrote:
>  If someone tries to blow my brains half way across the room I don't care
> if he's 17 because his birthday was yesterday or 16 because his birthday is
> day after tomarrow.
>   Play like the big boys--PAY like the big boys.

But he doesn't play like the "big boys".  For one thing, the kid doesn't
enjoy the full rights of an adult in other respects - voting and
representation - and so has not had the right to vote draconian and immoral
laws (the very laws you want to subject him to) out of existance.

Slightly off topic, but I have always felt that the quality of the education
system could be IMMENSELY improved by giving kids the vote at age 10 or 12,
and thus making the politicians realise that there were political implications
in treating the education system as a barely necessary irritation.

Of course, you've got to question whether capital punishment is _ever_
justified, and I would argue that it isn't.  This is way, way off the topic
of cypherpunks, and I don't intend to get into that discussion on this
forum.  I am very glad to live in a country which has signed international
conventions which prohibit it indulging in brutal and callous judicial
murder of a person, despite the occasional state government loony who
pines for the good old days.

> >  And let's not forget the rather unpleasant physical and sexual
> > assault statistics which are noticed in prisons worldwide, which includes
> > the USA.

>   do you have some statistics which says the USA has a significantly higher
> rate to compensate that free dental plan?

I don't believe that it has: from memory it was pretty much average in this
regard.  My point was that the original poster's statement that the US has
the most "pleasant" prisons in the world when this can happen at all is
utterly ridiculous.

						Ian.